James Comerford (alias, true family name Moran), United Kingdom (Ireland); Private, Royal Irish Regiment, 2nd Bn. Age: 34. Date of death: 19 October 1914. Service number: 6486. Family information: served as James Comerford, son of the late Mr and Mrs Moran, of King’s Street, Kilkenny; husband of Mrs Moran of New Building Lane, Kilkenny. Grave/memorial reference: Panel 11 and 12, Le Touret Memorial.

James Comerford (Comerton), United Kingdom (Ireland); Fireman, Mercantile Marine, SS Antinoe (London). Age: 42. Date of death: 28 May 1917, when the Antinoe was torpedoed by a German submarine about 150 miles off Bishop Rock. Family information: son of Martin and Mary (Comerford) of John Street, Wexford; husband of Julia Comerton (nee O’Connol), of Wygram Place, Wexford; born in Wexford. Memorial: Tower Hill Memorial, London.

Mary Agnes Comerford, United Kingdom; civilian casualty. Age: 17. Date of death: 16 December 1940. Family information: daughter of Thomas and Mary Agnes Comerford, of 26 New Allen Street, Collyhurst, Manchester; died at Ancoats Hospital, New Cross, Manchester; her brother, Michael John Comerford (see below), died in 1944, and is buried near Athens. Reporting authority: Manchester County Borough.

Michael Comerford, Australian (Ireland); Private, Australian Infantry, A.I.F., 53rd Bn. Date of death: 19 July 1916. Service number: 4755. Family information: son of Mr and Mrs John Comerford, native of Ireland. Grave/memorial reference: 7, VC Corner, Australian Cemetery and Memorial, Fromelles, France. The Villers-Bretonneux Memorial is Australia’s national memorial. It was erected to honour all Australians who served in France and Belgium during World War I. The cemetery has no headstones and is specifically dedicated to the abortive attack at Fromelles. The memorial wall records the names of 1,299 Australians who died in the battle and have no known grave. Its lawns contain 410 unidentified bodies of former AIF soldiers who fought in this sector in No-Man’s-Land between the German and Australian frontlines.

Michael John Comerford, United Kingdom; Gunner, Royal Artillery, 165 Field Regt. Age: 22. Date of death: 5 December 1944. Service number: 1144779. Family information: son of Thomas and Mary Agnes Comerford, of Manchester; husband of Sabina Comerford, of Manchester; his sister, Mary Agnes Comerford (see above), was a civilian casualty in 1940. Grave/memorial reference: 16. E. 12, Phaleron War Cemetery, near Athens.

Edward William Commerford, United Kingdom; Private, Home Guard, 18th County of London Bn. Age: 39. Date of death: 4 February 1944. Family information: son of Edward and Matilda Commerford; husband of Minnie Commerford, of Dulwich. Grave/memorial reference: Sec. 86. Grave 39695, West Norwood Cemetery and Crematorium.

2 comments:

I have a picture of a gravestone of Daniel Commerford, killed in action 09/17/1862, at the Battle of Antietam during the American Civil War if you would like it. My brother Sean found it during a visit there a while back. Please send me an email to mec2137@yahoo.com and I will send the picture along. (I'm not on facebook.) Thanks and great site! Michael Comerford

James was in my family - he moved in with my grandmother's family (due to her parents' death she and her sister were being looked after by Auntie, Catherine Ann Comerford) - he was pious and planned to become a priest (so didn't get on well with his dad, apparently). So James was treated as the son/brother they never had. Unfortunately he was called up and died in the Battle of Passchendaele. This was clearly a big blow and my grandmother kept a large framed picture of him in her bedroom until she died. I am currently trying to track it down (it can't have gone that far) so I can get a scan of it. All I currently have about his military service is basically what you have but I will see what I can get from the MOD (although a decent percentage of the WWI records are gone, so I'm not holding my breath on this).

About Me

I am a priest in the Church of Ireland (Anglican), Lecturer in Anglicanism and Liturgy in the Church of Ireland Theological Institute, Adjunct Assistant Professor in the University of Dublin (Trinity College Dublin) and a Canon of Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin.
For many years I worked as a journalist with the Lichfield Mercury, the Wexford People and The Irish Times, where I was Foreign Desk Editor until 2002.
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